terrorist attacks. Since the skyline of New York City had been substantially altered, post–9/11 American literature often framed the attacks and their consequences within this new, ideologically charged geography. Imagining New York after 9/11 soon turned into a twofold task for writers: trying to find words for the inexplicable events while at the same time avoiding to simply echo or resound the overused images, well–trodden rhetorical pathways, and hegemonic political messages that had rooted themselves firmly within the public consciousness and collective memory of Ground Zero.